#Rusl is a wonderful man

[smilesrobotlover]

Another thing, it’s not a bad thing per say, but it’s also very… dark?? Like I know tp is a darker Zelda game and is rated T, but it’s still relatively light hearted. And I’m reading this manga and watching some guy get slashed in half, watching Link get his arm chopped off, watching Illia contemplate suicide, like sheesh 😭😭😭😭 I think it mostly threw me off tho lol. Not stuff I’d expect to see from something Zelda, which I know doesn’t make sense but Zelda isn’t THAT dark you know? Even the rates T Zelda isn’t that dark.

I don’t mind darker and heavier stories, I also read some of fullmetal alchemist where Greed gets half his head chopped off (he lived tho) so it doesn’t bother me, it was just… unexpected for this manga fhdksvsksvsksbk

I’m curious now. What is it that you don’t like about the TP manga? I love it myself but have problems with it as well.

It’s mostly how Link is characterized, he’s fine in some of the books I’ve read but I HATE how he’s written in the first book. It feels very out of character for me you know? And I don’t like how different it is from the games? It feels like they’re trying to make it different enough from the game but then they write themselves into a hole and try to still make it similar to the games you know? I get that it won’t be the same as the game, heck a lot of the manga are very different, but idk if it’s cuz I love tp but it’s too different. Like the whole thing with Colin was too complicated where I’m like :/ why did they do that. I do love some things tho! I love how Luda can see Midna and shadows for some reason and how she goes with Link to the Goron mines. She and Renado are some of my fav npcs and I love seeing them get attention. But yeah, it mostly comes down to Link.

[maple-the-awesome]

He's Becomes a Dad || Part 2/2

Part 1

Pairing: Twilight, Warrior, Sky, Wild x Reader

Overview: Congratulations, you're new parents 🎉 Some of the Links are prepared. Others...might need a moment to gather themselves. But rest assured! At the end of the day, they're all going to get a handle on this whole dad thing. Warning: Mentions of miscarriages for Sky's section. Nothing to detailed, but it's there so beware 🙅‍♀️

Zelda Masterlist 🤎Fandom Masterlist

It's never been a surprise to you that Twilight would want kids of his own. He never even had to say it aloud, you could just read that look in his eyes whenever playing with the village children. It was a wordless yet ever so contagious request: I want this. And how were you to deny him? Just look at him!

Simply put, children were a top priority of yours almost as soon as you married. It didn't take long for you to become pregnant either (not with Twilight's fierce passion and your shared disinterest towards 'waiting'). Regardless, there were still many tears shed when you found out - all happy, of course, as your husband spun you around in his arms while you both laughed giddily in between quick kisses.

Let's get this straight: Twilight is prepared-prepared. Ordon is that type of close-knit community where everyone helps raise each other's kids, so despite this being his first rodeo as a new dad himself, he has plenty of experience taking care of youngsters. As a ranch-hand, he's also perfectly accustomed to the whole birthing process, having hand-delivered more baby goats than he can count, so don’t worry, nothing about the ‘less glamorous’ sides of pregnancy scare him. 

With that being said, Twilight doesn't stress too much aside from the normal concerns about your health, after all he recognizes that not every pregnancy is the same for every woman, but that's exactly why he makes it his personal mission to ensure your comfort. 

Feeling particularly ill? He'll make you all the tasty pumpkin soup you could ask for which, believe it or not, works wonders for an upset stomach. Just having a bad day? He'll happily let you cuddle with Wolfie to help you relax. Restless? He'll take you on a horse ride no matter the hour and if you're too far along in your pregnancy to climb onto Epona, a simple walk to Ordon's spring will do since that's the perfect spot to soak your sore body. Twilight is no above carrying you there himself if you ask.

Trust that your every worry is always smoothed; Twilight is there to reassure you no matter how 'little' the problem. Have concerns he can't speak on as a man? He'll happily go ask one of the other village women for you if you're too embarrassed to do so yourself, in fact this guy's already been talking Rusl and Uli's ears off for advice since day one. He doesn't want to leave a single thing to chance regardless of how confident he already feels which is probably why there's a stack of parenting books on his nightstand. Did he clear the shelves in Castle Town? Probably.

You're pretty sure that Twilight already had a 'go-bag' put together before the end of your first trimester, although he’d add to it like a paranoid squirrel up until your due-date. Curious, you had gone through it one day just to get a hint of how overboard he might've gone. Diapers, snacks, blankets, comfortable clothes for you, more parenting books...He does realize you're doing a home birth, right? Most of this stuff he could just grab from the cabinet if needed, but it's sweet that he's trying to be organized.

It isn’t really news to anyone that Hyrule’s heroes tend to land on the quieter side and usually Twilight isn’t much different…There’s a key word in there because you’re quite certain he hasn’t actually shut up since the second you told him you’re pregnant. He can hardly keep his excitement to himself! Oh, but it’s adorable, especially on those nights when he’ll fall asleep mumbling about his joy all while using your swollen stomach as a pillow. It makes your heart swell every time.

When you eventually go into labor, Twilight doesn’t show much outward panic if he has any at all, however he does feel incredibly terrible to watch you go through it without any relief. He feels absolutely useless while unable to take away your suffering the way a good husband should, so to make up for it, he does his utmost best to be your rock during those long hours, talking you through each painful contraction and doing everything in his power to distract you. Back rubs, walks around the house, whispers of sweet nothings…He’s by your side well into the night, keeping it up until it finally comes time to start pushing.

He definitely was not going to say it while you were going through the motions because he’d like to keep his head, but human and goat births are pretty much the same thing minus the actual cursing. He’s in his element then, knowing exactly what to do to ensure a safe delivery for mama and baby. His movements are almost automatic, trained by years of practice as he cleans the little one off before taking the time to admire them fully.

Are you shocked that Twilight is teary eyed? Not at all. Are you upset that he almost forgets about you entirely for a second because he’s so entranced by the baby? Also no, since you need a moment to catch your breath anyway. Don’t worry, though, he does eventually pass you your son reluctantly before hovering at your side with possibly the widest grin you’ve ever seen on the man since your wedding day. 

The rest of the night is calm from there on, filled with quiet whispers and cooing as you both take turns partaking in skin-to-skin contact with your baby. Will you be doing this again soon? You’re probably going to need a decent break to recover, but just know that your husband is absolutely ready whenever you are. In the meantime, expect to be showered in endless love and affection because you deserve it for the priceless gift you’ve given him.

Your relationship with Warrior has always been ‘slow moving’ if compared to most other couples’. For starters, while he may have a formidable reputation for being a supposed lady's man, all that 'skill' of his would go flying out the window whenever faced with your presence, so it took some time (and maybe a near-death experience) for any confessions to be made. In his defense, you're a very beautiful and strong woman who happened to be one of his superiors during most of the war, so please excuse him for usually being awed into silence whenever you showed even an ounce of interest in ‘lil ol’ him. His brain would literally become a windows error.

Even after Warrior did finally find the courage to ask you out, your respected jobs and heavy workloads have often forced your relationship to be put on the back-burner. Marry you? Hylia knows he’s been DYING to! You’re already wearing the ring and everything, but it's not like you're going anywhere anytime soon and he'd rather wait a few extra years to enjoy the perfect moment rather than rush the whole ‘happiest-day-of-our-lives’ thing during a bad time.

Luckily for him, you've never needed a formal certificate to know you own his heart. He proves it to you in other ways every day from cheesy love letters to overly romantic dates during your rare off time, and while you normally adore being the sole subject of his affection, that's exactly how you ended up in this very situation.

You're both adults and as such you won't pretend to be innocent: This wasn't planned in the slightest. Your jobs can be quite chaotic, as previously addressed, so you just wanted to help your husband-to-be relax and destress a bit - nothing new for either of you in itself, although that particular evening would end up weighing heavily on your mind a few weeks later.

To be honest, when you first entered Warrior's office and instructed him to sit down with a stern voice that could rival Commander Impa's, he thought you must've finally grown tired of being engaged for several years, having come to him then to demand that he marry you sooner. Agreement was right on the tip of his tongue when you delivered the bombshell that you were pregnant instead.

Your tone was serious and expression calm, but Warrior knows you well enough to spot the hidden worry in your eyes. It’s justified, of course. Had either of you even discussed having kids before? He doesn’t think so. It’s not like having a baby is a bad thing, though. The idea of creating a small family with you is a pleasant one, it’s just…happening a lot sooner than preferred. You both would’ve liked more time to plan and prepare…but oh well. What’s done is done. 

The real concern is will your jobs allow you both time off to take care of a baby? It's not like a war is currently going on, so Hyrule won't suffer too much from having two of its best captains sidelined, however what happens if that doesn't remain the case? What if war breaks out tomorrow or the day after? Warrior can’t let his pregnant fiancée fight in battles! What kind of husband and father would that make him?! But at the same time, is he just supposed to ask that you sacrifice your career in order to spare his? THAT’S NO BETTER!

...All things considered, you'd say Warrior handles the news far better than some might've. Yes, he begins to ‘slightly’ overthink things, although that's exactly why you had him sit down first. Calmly, you take his hand and tell him how things will be (your own way of offering comfort not only to him, but yourself as well). The bottom line is that if you could successfully fight Ganondorf’s army together, you can raise a child together, too. Really, how much harder can it be? You already have some minor experience being unofficial parents to little Time and Wind during the war. Just don't give your own children any magic masks or wind controlling devices and you should be golden.

Thankfully, many of Warrior’s initial fears are proven to be irrational during the earliest stages of your pregnancy. Everyone else was positively thrilled to hear the news and even Impa gave her congratulations, explaining to your fiancé’s relief that she’ll simply assign you more deskwork until it’s fit for you to return back to your normal duties. All he has to worry about in the meantime is making sure you actually take it easy; only a slightly difficult task considering your headstrong nature and insistence on not being ‘coddled’, but hey, if anyone can handle it, it’s the guy who’s hellbent on marrying your stubborn butt one day.

Warrior will admit that there were still some nights when he would nearly pull his hair out while doubting if he’s actually ready to be a dad, however the moment you officially being showing is the same moment he forgets all about any possible regrets and replaces them entirely with daydreams filled with not only his lovely wife, but also a little one who will hopefully think the absolute world of him. He already knows he’ll think of it of them.

Although you may feel a bit nervous towards the prospect of suddenly being parents, that doesn’t change the fact that you wouldn’t choose anyone else to go through this journey with. One look to your side and you’re certain of it. The way Warrior holds his son for the first time, newborn wrapped comfortably in his scarf and dad, eyes half-lidded with exhaustion after hours of labor yet the proud smile evident on his face nevertheless…You were right before: so long as you do it together, you’ll excel in this whole ‘parenting-thing’.

You had married young - almost as soon as you were able after graduating from the Knight Academy. To everyone else on Skyloft, you have always been the picture image of an ideal couple; the hero and his beloved princess who somehow manage to be completely and utterly smitten with each other even years later. To call Sky your husband is a blessing in itself and you consider yourself lucky every single day. There’s only ever been one problem with your relationship - one single complaint you can think of where neither of you are truly responsible: your lack of children.

When you first married, there was lots of talk, after all everyone was simply dying to know when the first generation on the Surface would be born. Your parents were eager for grandchildren and Zelda, your best friend, had way too much fun teasing you over the matter by expressing her 'surprise' that Sky had yet to give you a baby despite how 'passionate' he’s always been towards you (she would make sure to use those exact words, too). 

Initially, you never minded anyone’s curiosity. It’s only natural to expect children from a newly wed couple. It's when that same couple reaches their third then sixth year of marriage without any trace of tiny feet or squealing laughter that those curious and well-meant questions grow quiet with unbearable pity, your shared excitement becoming shuttered sorrow.

At the start there was nothing to worry about. You were both young and not putting that much effort into it, so certain it wouldn't take long for your family to grow. Then the years began to pass and you would try everything the doctor recommended, but every test would still leave you as disappointed as the last. The absolutely worst form of despair came those few times you'd actually get your hopes up only to have them cruelly dashed a few months in.

What were you doing wrong? Sky would always hush your anxieties and do his utmost best to reassure you, however you knew by his own tears that your infertility hurt him just as much, especially when on those quieter nights, you'd suggest that perhaps you simply weren't meant to be parents - that the gods were just trying to tell you both something you were too stubborn to accept.

It's for that reason that you had such mixed emotions once finally able to fall pregnant again. You were optimistic deep down, however after six years of attempts and losses, you were wary to embrace too much joy right away which was shown in the way Sky held onto you for what felt like hours after you told him or how he slept each night with a hand on your stomach even in those early days, internally praying to the goddesses this would be the one.

A month passed...Then two...And three, and four…For once, you didn't feel sick aside from what was considered normal. Maybe a bit of high blood pressure the doctor kept a close eye on, but other than that he’d always tell Sky and you the same thing: they're healthy.

Even then, you’d say you remained extra cautious, not daring to eat nor do anything the doctor so much as hesitated against, however Sky was by far the worst when it came to worrying. As your husband, he considers your physical and mental well-being his personal responsibility, but as the father of your child? His work has doubled!

All chores were to be his alone so that you could rest. Any bout of sickness was closely monitored and tended to. His hand would remain on your stomach from beginning to end, although overtime it would be done less out of fear and more for the sake of bounding, often accompanied by his voice or the melody of his harp which he would happily play for you both whenever you were having a particularly difficult time falling asleep at night.

Now, you didn't dare tell anyone about your pregnancy during the first half, not wanting to deliver anymore bad news should it come, however once the remilit was out of the bag, you became the center of attention much to Sky's conflicted feelings. On one hand, you deserved it for all of your hard work growing a baby, but on the other, that overprotective dad-side of him couldn't help fretting over the vast number of harmful germs your guests could possibly be passing onto you and your unborn child. Did he make everyone wash their hands for ten minutes before visiting? Yes, yes he did.

Beyond being protective, Sky was also very emotional throughout the entire pregnancy maybe even more than you sometimes. He got teary-eyed after every doctor's appointment that confirmed the baby's development, while picking out names together, and even when you were yelling at him for something stupid because as far as he was concerned, you still looked so beautiful standing there with crossed arms and a round belly carrying his child. Oh, but none of that compared in the slightest to the tears that were shed when he actually held his daughter for the first time; that amount of waterworks could put the flood of Faron to shame!

Six years of waiting made you both lose hope. You assumed you’d never be able to have children of your own and even began to look towards other options such as adoption or simply living your lives childless forever…but the day your daughter was born was the day all your anxieties and doubts were finally put to rest. Now, as you cry happily with your husband, you can’t think of a single complaint towards your relationship; it’s officially as perfect as the precious little bundle in your arms.

Wild and you were still practically newlyweds when you gave him the 'thrilling' news. You were so happy to do so, too, barely able to bite back your excitement while watching your husband lift a small pair of baby pajamas out of a gift box. You were absolutely glowing as you eagerly awaited his reaction and all he could do was simply stare into space as his whole world came crashing down on top of him. Did he look horrified on the outside? He must've, because he swears he could’ve pinpointed the exact moment that shine in your eyes died, a frown etching its way onto your lips. What else was he supposed to do aside from fake a smile and embrace you, keeping you close to his chest so that your delight wouldn't be spoiled by his internal nervous breakdown?

Wild has zero right to be shocked. You had both been intimate (as tends to happen when you're married) not to mention you had made it perfectly clear from the start of your relationship that you would want a family one day. Judging on your eagerness towards the topic, it was never up for debate either; no kids would be a dealbreaker for you, so Wild had no choice but to quietly agree, too afraid to dare utter the truth or voice any hesitation because Hylia forbid you get the wrong idea and leave him. 

He thought it would be harmless. Some couples remain married for years before any children follow and you weren't in any big hurry, so he figured he'd have plenty of time to get his act together until the day of your dreams arrived; he didn't think it would happen during your first year of marriage! ...Now he's really dug himself into a hole it's too late to try escaping from…

He’s almost said something - a few times actually. He knows it’s only fair and that as your husband, he owes you proper communication, but each time he opens his mouth, his mind curses him with the image of your sadness. What if you think he doesn’t want this at all? What if you think he hates the baby and hates you for being pregnant? What if you concluded he must want to leave you so you decide to beat him to the punch?! 

…Okay, so Wild knows you aren’t going to just walk away. You’ve always been good at listening to his inner demons and acting as his strongest pillar of support, but that doesn’t change his fear that you might be hurt by whatever he has to say and he will not allow himself to ruin your own excitement. 

In the years that he’s known you, he can’t say he’s ever seen you quite as happy as when you found out about your baby. He knows he should match that joy, too. Most men do. Hell, Twilight practically sent a five-page essay bragging about his wife's first pregnancy. Truth be told, Wild actually does feel happy. On his better days, he feels that flicker of pride and a hint of eagerness because a family with you honestly sounds wonderful. The problem is, in his mind, it isn't a question as to what he wants, but rather what he deserves. 

So much has gone wrong in his past. It doesn’t matter how much you or anyone else assures him otherwise, it’s hard to shake the feeling that he failed Hyrule. He still suffers from so many nightmares and waves of guilt that he can’t properly put into words. You’re still having to shake him out of dazes and smooth his following sobs…How is he going to be a good dad and be there for his child when he can barely stand upon his own two feet like this?

Initially, Wild thought these feelings would go away; that’s why he never spoke them to you. He wanted so desperately to believe they wouldn’t linger, especially after you both got married. He lives in a peaceful world, has a nice home in a quiet village, a beautiful wife who adores him…He should’ve been able to move on from the Calamity already, so why hasn’t he? On his worst nights, it makes him wonder if he’ll ever be okay or if he’s just screwed you and the baby over by tying you both down to him.

These two sides of him - the hopeful and the pitiful - continue to battle for dominance inside Wild’s head throughout each step. Sometimes he’s genuinely smiling with you as you pick out baby names. Other times he’s sitting outside alone trying his damn hardest to remember any piece of his past that might make him feel at least a little better about his luck towards being a dad, preferably a time when he was actually good with kids or even had a family before. 

Wild’s internal dilemma comes to a head one fateful night when he’s awoken to the baby’s distressing cries. He had honestly already been awake after a mild case of anxiety, but you on the other hand are tired, worn from nine long months of pregnancy and the early days of active motherhood. The last thing he wants is for you to lose out on precious rest (a rare gift these days), so leaping out of bed, he’s quick to reach the baby’s crib.

Unfortunately, Wild’s natural instincts seem to basically stop right there at the crib’s side. Hands hovering above, he tries his best to calm his daughter through whispered assurances and attempts at cooing the same way he’s seen you do. When that doesn’t work, he awkwardly picks her up, cuddling her close to his chest while quietly pleading at this point. Is she hungry? Does she need a diaper change? Did she have a nightmare? Whatever it is, if you wake up, you’ll take over and he’ll be left to stand aside feeling like he can’t even do the basic task of comforting his own child and -

- To his astonishment, his efforts actually work. It really must’ve been as simple as a nightmare because slowly, the baby falls silent, seemingly forgetting all about her troubles as she finds solace gazing up at her daddy with the widest blue eyes and a stuck-out tongue that can’t seem to keep itself in her mouth. It looks rather goofy, so Wild can’t help but chuckle, although the sound is soft as his heart melts under the attention she holds towards him. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say it’s almost like she’s looking at her entire world…

Maybe some would say this moment isn’t necessarily anything special, but for Wild, it’s everything. As if suddenly a pro, he’s able to rock the little beauty gently back to sleep, his pleas turning into words of admiration as he tucks her into bed. There, he continues to keep watch over her until he feels tired himself, all the while thinking: he might be broken from years of trauma, and he might not be the best husband or parent out there because of it, but that's not going to stop him from doing everything in power to be there for his princesses.

[skyloftian-nutcase]

You know I always love me some dad squad. What are the dads doing? Are they surviving? Have they been thrown into any shenanigans ?

Y’know it’s been a while since I’ve written for them and that’s a darn shame.

.

Fierce sneezed.

It was a surprisingly tame sound considering the entity’s size. The look of sheer alarm on his face, however, was more unexpected.

“Bless you?” Rusl offered hesitantly, wondering what had the deity so disturbed.

The widened glowing eyes returned to their normal size as the deity looked at him. “Bless me?”

Rusl blinked. Then he almost laughed. He supposed this was the last person to be saying that to. “It’s an expression. It’s polite to say whenever someone sneezes.”

“Who bestows the blessing?”

The Ordonian chuckled as Abel sighed heavily. “Well… perhaps in your case that Hylia you keep mentioning?”

Abel’s head whipped around from where he’d been reading a map. “You don’t know who Hylia is?”

“I’m afraid not.”

Fierce watched him with his usual stoic demeanor, but just as he was about to speak he sneezed yet again.

“This is problematic,” the deity muttered. “How do I control these?”

“You hop on one foot,” Abel said flatly as he rolled his eyes and went back to his map.

Fierce stared at him a moment and slowly, curiously started to raise one foot. Rusl burst out laughing. The deity followed through with the motion unexpectedly, though, using the elevated foot to kick a small stone. It flew across the way, cutting through the air until it smacked into an octorok that had just poked its head out.

“I’m always impressed at your ability to sense danger,” Rusl noted, only slightly unnerved.

The deity sneezed a third time, followed by a raspy cough. The widened-eyed, startled expression returned.

Abel glanced over, starting to look genuinely concerned. “You might be coming down with something.”

Fierce’s face grew grave. “So this is what illness feels like. I’ve never experienced this phenomenon spontaneously.”

“Being ill does tend to be spontaneous,” Rusl pointed out, bemused. “We don’t usually plan it. But perhaps we should just rest for the remainder of the day.”

“No,” Fierce shook his head. “I have experienced illness symptoms in the past when…”

Both Abel and Rusl perked up, curious. The deity hardly spoke of himself - his actions and strange mannerisms told enough, but the Ordonian would be lying if he said he wasn’t interested in the mythical being’s history.

Fierce sighed slowly through his nose, coming to a conclusion. “There is something you must know. You two are honorable warriors with pure intentions. I trust you enough with this task.”

“What task?” Rusl asked, glancing at Abel warily. Had the deity not…? Well. He supposed none of them had entirely trusted each other, but Rusl’s secret keeping for Link’s sake had been fairly reasonable - at the time he’d assumed telling his companions that his boy could turn into a wolf would be akin to lunacy. But they’d all learned more about each other - everyone knew of Link’s transformative ability now, everyone knew Abel’s boy was injured somehow, everyone knew all their Links were heroes. What secret was the deity about to reveal, then?

“Take care of him,” the deity said simply, reaching up and pinching just below his chin. Rusl was about to ask what he was talking about when a light flashed brightly, warm energy washing over Rusl as he looked away a moment before hearing a thud. He blinked a few times and heard Abel gasp and run, and he looked back to see a young man—teenager?—lying on the ground where the deity had once been.

[crazylittlejester]

How do you think the modern gang would react to their LU counterparts? Like, imagining M!Twilight looking at LU Twilight and like, "DUDE?? THE FACE TATTOOS???? FANGS??? BRO YOURE RIPPED???" Or seeing Time in this decked out suit of armor and giant sword

Sky seeing himself as this literal knight, the fastest and possibly best fighter in the group

But at the same time, where theres alot of room for "you look so fucking cool dude" there could be major angst

M!War seeing LU!Wild. Seeing his best friend covered in battle scars, seeing himself with burns up his arm, or even seeing Wind, the literal child, covered in wounds

Idk I just wanna know how you think theyd react :))

this was the most incredible question you could’ve asked me and im using this as a mental break from my research paper 🙌🙌🙌 thank you 🙏 i wish i had the brain energy to yap more but my head really hurts so i humbly offer you this for now:

(for the LU boys im going to be talking about them in reference to how i typically characterize them in my non au fics. also my bad for spelling errors or weird sentences, weird things are happening to my vision-)

I think out of the main three boys from the Miscellaneous Modern Au, the Skys would handle it the best. Like they’d be weirded out at first and a bit disturbed for SURE, but they’d get over it pretty fast. M!Sky would probably be very fascinated by my LU Sky’s scars (the ones he got fighting Demise) and I think it would hurt both of them to realize even in another universe, there are still people who see them as sleepy and lazy. Though LU Sky has the whole hero thing going for him, he’s now the ‘godslayer’, father of the royal bloodline and the one who forged the master sword. I think M!Sky would feel a little disappointed in himself he hasn’t done anything cool like that, but they’d both move on to chatting about crafts pretty fast. LU Sky carves, M!Sky knits, they both like music and cats/remlits, and they love their gfs. They’ll get along okay. It’d be very important to them both to know that they’re both close with Groose, and that they KNOW Twi and Wars and all the others, even if the connections are a little different

M!Twi and LU Twi would lose their MINDS over each other’s tattoos, not sure how LU Twi would feel about M!Twi’s eyebrow piercing but they’d love each other’s tattoos. I think LU Twi would have some complicated feelings about how M!Twi got to CHOOSE his tattoos and how they’re made of things he loves and are symbolic of things that are important to him while his (LU Twi) are the sign of a curse, but I think he’d like his counterpart’s very much. LU Twi certainly has more visible, DEFINED muscle than M!Twi does, but they’re equally as strong, my modern au Twi just has a bit more healthy fat on him. They are both SOLID fucking guys, definitely the person you call to help you move a couch. M!Twi would also lose his shit over the fangs, which I can see LU Twi being a little self conscious about, but he’d be a little unnerved that M!Twi’s eyes are BROWN, and not the same ocean blue that Time’s are

Speaking of Time, I think LU Twi would be a bit… jealous, that M!Twi got to be raised by him. LU Twi looks up to LU Time so so much, the man means a hell of a lot to him, and he had to deal with snappy comments from the shade and now he has to live with the knowledge Time dies a miserable death and seeing that M!Twi got M!Time as a father would be like rubbing salt in a wound. M!Twi got Rusl and Uli and Colin in ADDITION, as close family friends, so I can see LU Twi getting pretty jealous. (Not to mention the fact that M!Twi still has Midna-) M!Twi would feel horribly guilty to realize how isolated and lonely LU Twi feels near constantly, and I can see him getting into a bit of a bad mindset and start to think his depression and anxiety aren’t valid because M!Twi’s childhood was genuinely wonderful, what right does he have to be depressed when his counterpart lost everything and has to carry around such heavy knowledge it’s driving him into the dirt? (and I would bonk him on his head for this, because M!Twi’s mental health issues are JUST as valid)

I think my LU Wars would get nauseous the second he saw his other self, because he’d look at 20 yo M!War and recognize the look in his eyes immediately and just Know that there really is no universe in which he can avoid Cia, and that would be like a knife to the chest. He could look at him and know EXACTLY why M!War still dyes his hair, even if he complains about it being damaged, why he spends so long getting ready every morning, why he runs himself into the ground so he doesn’t have time to think about anything besides what he’s throwing himself into. I think LU Wars would be a bit confused that M!War seems to GENUINELY miss the spotlight, but he might wave that off as M!War being so young still

M!War would think LU Wars has a stick up his ass, which is fucking hilarious because they are genuinely the exact same person (like yes, obviously, but they also really do have the SAME personality too, LU War is just more likely to stand quietly and observe because that’s an army thing and he looks a little Important and Fancy in his armor). M!War would also be a bit unnerved by the scars on his counterpart’s face, I think they’d startle him a bit. LU Wars would be HORRIFIED to learn about M!War and his relationship with his mother, but very grateful to know he’s still being cared for by Time and Malon. Granted that would be so fucking weird to him- It’d be weird to M!War too, because those two have a VERY different relationship with Time, he’d watch LU Wars smack LU Time on the back and just fuck with him or something and immediately have a heart attack. To M!War, Time is the father he never had. M!War never knew his dad, his mom never dated, most his coaches and dance teachers were women, Time really is the closest thing he’s ever had to a father and his approval means fucking EVERYTHING to him. To LU Wars, thats his little brother, forever and always. Doesn’t matter how tall Time gets, Wars looks in his eyes and sees the same kid from the war who he held during loud explosions to comfort him. Time (both of em) would find the dynamic change very weird as well

M!War, LU Wars, M!Wild, and LU Wild would just be a goddamn mess of a group- The Wilds seeing another universe in which they still failed at something Warriors succeeded at is just one thing, they have to look at each other and recognize that their failure killed one of them and took mobility from the other. And I think in a way they’d be a little jealous of each other (and also feel bad about it), M!Wild needs to use a cane a lot of the time (not every day) but he eats and sleeps like normal, he’s still ‘hylian’. LU Wild is slightly dead a little bit, sometimes he doesn’t have a heart beat, but he can scale a mountain for shits and giggles on a saturday afternoon

And LU War has to realize M!Wild is to M!War what MASK is to him, and that’s a shock I’m not sure he’s ready for. LU Wars loves Wild, ofc he does, but they aren’t super close because LU Wild is a little unnerved by him. M!War would literally die for his Wild, he’d do anything for him, Wild was the one who gave him his blue scarf he’s his oldest and closest friend, and seeing LU Wild would give him a heart attack I think. Not that M!Wild doesn’t have burn scars, but my LU Wild isn’t… perfectly alive- His eyes ‘glow’ an unnatural color and he’s genuinely a bit off putting until you get used to him because being around him makes the hairs on your neck stand up. M!Wild is weird, sure, but in a living kind of way, LU Wild is weird because of the shrine

god i have. i have such Thoughts about this. Some of the Miscellaneous Modern au boys could be friends with my version of their LU counterpart, but others would not be able to handle certain things about the other because its WORSE than looking in a mirror, it’s looking at another version of themself and realizing that fate and that trauma was truly unavoidable. I also think it’d be a comfort to all of them that even in another life, they still all found each other and are friends

[nancyheart11]

Dad in a dungeon pt1

They were following fast on the trail of a group of Yiga, almost where they could touch them, Abel was sure. If they could capture just one, then he felt sure they could finally get some straight answers about where to find Abel’s son, along with the others. They moved down on a slope lined with colored rocks and a dip in the middle of the path from the many feet that had trodden it in times past. The Yiga scum slipped in a small opening of great wooden doors that had seen much better days, but peeling paint and chipped carvings aside, the doors were magnificent in scale and in lovingly rendered carvings of something Abel didn’t pay attention to as the Fierce Deity nearly threw the doors off their hinges in his haste to enter the space.

They finally cornered the Yiga against a wall only to hear dreaded giggles of the sort that were part of Abel’s nightmares. He could have sworn he saw one of the blasted traitors wink at him through the mask before the air was filled with dark, sickly sweet smoke and mocking laughter. He felt air move on his back and Abel whirled around squinting through the thick smoke and try and get a hit on one of them.

The air finally cleared enough to see more than the sword in front of his body and Abel felt as though he had been doused in ice water as the great wooden doors slammed shut with finality. He had a feeling that there would be no getting out that way, even with the Fierce Deity’s absurd Strength. 

“Well that didn't work out.” Rusl said with a scowl on his face.

Fierce simply turned away from the door, sheathing his huge blade as he did so. He inhaled very loudly and held it for what would have been a concerningly long time for a mortal, then let it all out in one annoyed exhale through his nose making Abel’s heart jump even as he had kept an eye on the Deity.

“I sense a great darkness further in this building and it grows, even now… My little one would feel obligated to clear the place, to protect the land from whatever may emerge from the depths. I suggest we do the same in their places.” Abel could’ve sworn he saw the shadow of a smirk on the deity's face, but a blink later and it was as impassive as ever. “Besides, the items sealed in such places are often very helpful.”

Abel raised one exasperated eyebrow. They didn’t have time to clear some forgotten ruin of monsters! They already dealt with far too many just trying to get to the next town, the next clue to where Link (and the other Links) could be. He turned to Rusl for help and found him lighting a torch, already moving to follow the deity further into the foreboding dark. Abel felt a headache start behind his eyes as he went to follow, hating that Fierce was right and knowing that the kind of man he’d been before the calamity wouldn’t have thought twice about trying to help.

The group started down crisp sharp stairs which after a small time turned a perfect 90 degrees to the right. Then again and again and–

Abel was right back in front of the giant wooden doors. 

He groaned in frustration because he had heard tales of people getting lost in seemingly simple dungeons and dying. He didn't have time for that!

He finally took his hands from his face only to see Rusl standing uncomfortably close to the edge, stone held in hand. Before Abel could ask how it would help Rusl dropped the stone straight down.

Abel felt something hit his arm. He turned to the threat drawing his sword as he did so only to see–

The stone?

Rusl grinned at him and Fierce, then confidently walked off the side.

When no sounds of Rusl’s body hitting the stone far beneath them sounded Abel began frantically looking for his brave but far too reckless– 

A whistle broke his thoughts and pulled his attention to a wall on the side of the stairs beneath him, where Rusl stood casually, like he wasn’t defying the laws of physics and oh look Fierce was joining him.

Abel brought a hand to his nose and tried not to scream, no wonder dungeons were so deadly if this was the kind of thing required to even get to the next door. Abel let all the air inside him out in a huge, disapproving sigh before following his companions, since he wasn’t going to let common sense of all things get him killed.

—-

It quickly became apparent that nothing in this dungeon was as it seemed at first glance. Normal doors when approached turned out to simply be startlingly realistic paintings, the actual doors being cleverly hidden until you were at just the right angle or needing to do things like leap across a series of poles to reach the ledge containing them.

 Upon reaching the first such door, Abel leaned his head against the smooth wood to catch his breath and wait for his heartbeat to slow, after all Tilieth was the one with the paraglider and he did not want to end up as a hylian pancake on the floor. He looked back just in time to see Fierce take a couple steps back, run at the wall and scramble up it smoothly in his armor, grabbing the ledge in one hand and pulling himself up with ease. Abel swallowed the hot envy in his mouth and went to open the door–

Locked

Why was it locked? Fierce seemed unsurprised, as did Rusl from where he perched a pillar way, since there wasn’t room for all three of them in the doorway at once.

“The Key must be elsewhere” Fierce nodded as though this was expected

He simply lowered himself and dropped the remaining 15 feet with no problem. And Abel’s knees groaned at the thought of having to cross those stupid pillars even once more, much less twice more just to make it back to this door which was most certainly not the end of the dungeon from the few bits of conversation Rusl and Fierce had shared on the subject.

“Hey Fierce, could you catch me?”

“Of course, little Farmer. It would be more efficient than crossing the pillars in fact.”

So of course Rusl jumped down, Fierce jumped up and, . . . huh that actually looked way more comfortable than Abel had imagined.

Fierce turned in his direction and raised one perfectly sculpted brow in silent question. Abel was grateful he didn’t have to answer out loud as he closed his eyes and took one small step over the ledge. Despite the armor the deity wore, his arms were gentle and he cushioned Abel’s fall and within minutes he found himself set back on solid ground.

With that done Fierce turned and began walking a direction they hadn’t gone yet. They found some red bokoblins camped around a fire soon enough and Abel almost relished something simple to do. Once they were defeated the group moved on, coming to a strange smooth curved wall.

Rusl’s touch flickered and in the corner of his eye Abel spotted scratches. He approached and based on the regularity and uniformity he felt sure it was writing! 

Writing he couldn’t read.

“Can either of you read this? Since we all apparently have different writing maybe it’s one of ours?”

Abel couldn’t help the hopeful note that crept into the end of his voice. He may not be a soldier anymore, but he still craved the easily understood nature of it. Stand here, fight these monsters, try not to claw your eyes out over this paperwork. He was starting to be more impressed with the other son’s if they had had to deal with things like this on a regular basis.

The others shook their heads and Abel felt his heart sink a little, but then Fierce tilted his head, then walked up to the wall and raised his arms, the tops of which easily cleared the top of the wall. Rusl came over quickly and Fierce lifted him to the top of the wall, then turned to Abel, grabbing him in an embrace with hands that nearly wrapped around his entire torso and lifting him up to join Rusl on the top of the wall.

Abel looked around and from this angle was able to see that the wall was entirely flat, save for a few areas that bulged out. He looked to Rusl who grinned at them.

“Looks like we just avoided a whole puzzle with Fierce’s height. Guess they didn’t expect anyone eight feet tall to come here.”

Fierce jumped the wall and helped them down from the other side without a word. Abel was starting to feel as though he wasn’t pulling his own weight with this whole dungeon exploring thing. Rusl had figured out that the whole dungeon didn’t follow the rules of physics as he knew them, while Fierce had been making what were surely meant to be dangerous and difficult obstacles seem like child’s play. Before he could back down Abel mumbled out a thanks, and felt his heart sink a little bit at the way Fierce’s eyes widened minutely at the words.

Finally looking forward Abel wanted to throw his hands over his eyes at the sight, in front of them was a stairway stretching as far as the eyes could see in stark black and white, somehow seeming to go both up and down at the same time, almost looking at thought someone had taken a chessboard, broken it into the individual squares and then put back together in the most confusing manner possible.

They moved until they were almost to the staircase and objects dropped from the ceiling! One black, one white and one half and half. Abel ignored them and went to put a foot on the stairs? If that’s what they were, but felt as though he had been doused in ice when he foot went through the square. He pulled it out quickly as though it had been burned and fell from the sudden change in momentum.

Rusl looked at him, looked at the stones? Boulders? Things that were round and large enough Abel would have to use 2 hands to hold them properly. Then his eyes lit up, he grabbed the white one, and stepped confidently onto the white square next to Abel. When he didn’t fall through Abel realized that colors weren’t just there to mock his eyes, but to make even moving on this strange staircase a puzzle of it’s own. He picked up the black stone and felt it’s weight, heavy, but not so much that he would tire quickly. Fierce of course picked up the swirled stone in one hand while holding his sword in the other and they all began to move on their designated squares. Rusl’s took him up, Abel’s took him down, and Fierce’s went sideways . . . for some reason.

Abel felt nervous separating from the others for any reason inside something as dangerous as a dungeon. Abel got to the bottom of the long walk and saw white on his left, so he held his head high and walked straight through what looked solid to find himself in a room with water running down open archways on all sides, with bright starlike lights wavering in the water with beautiful cerulean fishlike creatures swirling and occasionally blocking out the light. 

On the ledge of the archway he was standing on without falling in the four corners were four statues, one a bird with open wings, one a Lizard sunning itself on a rock, one a horse like creature with lumps on its back, and the last statue was so intimately familiar Abel’s heart hurt looking at it, for it looked Miphas divine beast, which he believed the girl had once said was based off something called an elephant.

He walked around the room trying to take in every detail and figure out what the trick was, trying not to think about how he was able to feel the cool trickling water under his boots and what appeared to be open space should he fall through.

His neck hurt from looking down so much, and Abel stretched it back as far as he could comfortably go, relishing in the relief it brought him before opening his eyes and immediately feeling stupid.

There was a bright shiny chest on the ‘ceiling’ in plain sight, and it probably held something that he very much needed to get out of here. Abel walked over to one corner made of good solid stone and put his foot on the wall wanting to see if he could walk up the side. He lifted his other foot–

And his back hit the ground, a long low groan being drawn out of him at the pain. He was never a thinker, it had never been his strong suit, but he was going to have to figure it out if he wanted to get his son and wife back, or ever leave the dungeon for that matter. Rubbing his likely bruised backside he got up and shook out his arms, now that they weren’t holding the weight of the stone–

Wait, where had it gone?

He looked and saw it had rolled just out of reach on the water he’d been standing on moments before. Moving a boot off the stone and into the water it went through, and Abel breathed out an annoyed sigh.

 Great, now he was confined to the stone ledge on the edges of the room since he didn’t want to find out just how endless the space below was and he didn’t have a way to reach the stone yet. He got up and seeing as his hand was able to pass through the water of the arch he was next to very easily, Abel decided to lean on the stone and stick his head out, to see just how distorted the space beyond had been by the water.

They outside looked like piles and piles of velvet layered on something, soft and luxurious almost calling to be touched, though he knew that it was too far away if it was even something that could be touched. Studded along the background where dots of pure white light, shaped like tears individually with what Abel had first thought to be fish now appearing to be whale’s in a deep blue at their center, lightning as they went out and delicate porcelain white patterns scattered along their surface as they swam peacefully in the area. The one he was watching moved  enough to unobscure the area and Abel sucked in a breath.

He knew that symbol in the not sky, everyone did, it was the one that had been stitched into the champion blue cloth for Revali. Abel quickly pulled his head back through the water headless of how much splashed everywhere. And he looked–

There

In the farther left corner from where he currently stood was the bird statue. Abel looked out the arch to his right and squinted, seeing the lizard of Daruk studded in the sky. He moved to the nearest statue, which was the lizard curled on the rock and started pushing with his whole body, gritting his teeth against the awful grinding noise made by the statue's movement. After continuing for some time and turning the corner he felt the statue click into place, and for a moment he wanted to jump in the air! He’d figured out some strange part of this all on his own, but then he remembered the other three statues and winced.

He cracked his knuckles and got to work. Eventually when the last statue (Mipha’s) was pushed into place after the light click there was a loud thonck as the Chest fell to the ‘floor’. Abel sighed wondering just how he was going to get out there before realizing that now the archways appear to have been filled in with translucent glass, no longer having water run in the space. He almost lamented the beauty lost before testing the sturdiness and went to open the Chest. Inside was a silver key along with a purple rupee and he was glad to see that because now that he was visiting towns more often money was something he had more need of.

Abel stuffed the key in his pocket, grabbed the stone, and found the area of the wall not as solid as it appeared to go back and hopefully meet with his companions. When he got back to the place the stones had first dropped he blinked at the pedestals that were definitely not there before they appeared as though they had simply grown out of the stone Abel stood on, with no joints or lines to separate them at all. As he watched a third pedestal bloomed in front of him to make three, and Abel got a feeling that the stones they had just used were meant to be returned here.

Rusl called out to him and Abel turned to greet him, only to begin laughing when he saw that Rusl’s clothes and hair were covered in splashes of various colors, all bright, none matching, and with his headband hanging askew on his head, nearly covering one eye. Coming from the opposite direction of where he had disappeared earlier was Fierce whose boots were once more bloodstained, though it was such a usual sight it took Abel a minute to realize most was fresh. 

They showed the things they had gathered in their individual rooms. Rusl had gotten quite a few rupees, Abel had his key and Fierce had both a key and compass for the dungeon. They put their stones into the pillars and watched as they receded smoothly into the floor. Behind them the strange stairway was disappearing, step by step, until a rather small door was left revealed. 

Abel frowned at it. So far everything in the dungeon had been spacious, to the point Fierce didn't have to duck his head to enter doorways, but this door was so short that even Abel, shortest of the group, would need to crouch to enter.. He grimaced at how much his back would hurt from just this room and moved forward. He went to put his key in the lock and Rusl put his hand on the door. Abel looked over and raised an eyebrow in question, far too tired for words already.

“We’ve been in here a while now, I think before we head in there some food might be a good idea.”

Abel wanted to get this over with and leave, but he saw the sense in Rusl’s suggestion and was also the only one of the group who could cook anything decent. Fierce made sense but how Rusl managed to char a sandwich? Abel didn’t want to know.

They sat on the smooth cold floor and Abel took some of the leftover rice from the night before and began shaping it adding salt, pepper and some hyrule herb as he went to make rice balls. He made sure to make ones too large for one hand so that Fierce would have an easier time holding them. He grumbled about others who were no good at cooking for themselves while Rusl sliced a few apples but felt his chest warm when both Rusl and Fierce hummed appreciatively at the rice balls along with the apple slices.

When that was finished Abel took several long drinks from his skin, swishing the water around inside to dislodge any random food bits and trying to decide how much to ration should they be stuck in this dungeon for days.

Then he got up, popped his knuckles and marched forward. Immediately upon entering the small room he saw a river rushing along inside a built stone bed, with pillars holding up the impossibly zig zagging structure. Abel mourned his briefly dry self before stepping into the cool water, since the ledges on the edge of the bed were quite thin and he didn’t want to test his balance. Then he realized the bed sloped downward, like an artificial hill in all the zigging and zagging, yet the water ran up? He turned to investigate and followed the flow of the water, feeling like that was the closest thing to a clue he’d encountered thus far.

Eventually he got to the top where the water arched beautifully off the stone as it was released to a water wheel? A water wheel that somehow held the water as it went upside down and deposited the water back at the bottom to move up again.

Looking closer at the water wheel Abel could see that it was guarded by a group of fish with extremely sharp teeth and that something was glinting at him from in between slats in the wheel.

It was times like these that Abel really missed the infinite bomb capacity of the sheikah slate. Instead he looked inside his bag, rooting through to see what useful items he–

Aha! He pulled out a spear triumphantly, then thought better of it and pulled out some rope as well.

After securing the spear with rope he threw it towards the bottom, it did not reach. So Abel trudged down a few levels ignoring how his head hurt when he looked too closely at the nonsensical architecture. He threw his spear once more and hit a couple of the fish head on, confirming they were monsters with puffs of smoke they emitted upon death.

With that out of the way it was simply a matter of getting more accurate in his throws the less fish there were to hit. When the area was cleared the water changed direction and Abel was swept off his feet unprepared for the change as he slid down the slope.

His arm jolted uncomfortably in its socket as the spear clenched in his hands caught on what felt like every corner and his legs hit walls before he could turn. Eventually he was deposited into a body of water, and once he gets his head above water he sees the water wheel.

Alright then.

He swims over to it and sees that there is now a solid stone platform he can climb on next to it. It puts him at just the right height to grab the strange object in the middle. There was a delicate sphere that looked like it was made from metal Spidersilk surrounding a triangle that didn't make sense. The triangle was made of a thin square piece of metal twisted upon itself in a way that just didn't work, yet here it was in front of Abel.

He twisted the sphere to get a better look at the triangle, where the blue side had been down, and once the red side was down there was the door in front of him.

Abel blinked and looked behind him,the room he'd just been in still there, but now he didn't have to go all the way back up the stone banks, so he shrugged and moved on.

He exited back to the now smooth room. Rusl was busy organizing arrows while Fierce watched on with interest. Rusl jumped a little when he noticed Abel. 

“That was quick, thought you’d be in there longer!”

Abel didn’t take offense to the statement, though he felt like he’d spent some time spearing the fish, guess he lost track of time doing so.

After Rusl had put all the good arrows back in his quiver they continued on, going back to the door by the pillars, though having Fierce lift them up and hand them the key being far easier of Abel’s joints than the alternative.

Rusl turned the key this time and they both pushed open the door, waiting inside for Fierce to lift himself and join them. Once he crossed the threshold the door slammed closed behind them and Iron bars slammed down over both the set behind them and the one in front, trapping them inside. 

Then the room rumbled and a paper crane fell on the floor? Abel furrowed his brow and went to pick it up, but at that moment a wave of paper cranes swooped down, seemingly of their own accord, all moving in one great rush to form some sort of giant creature. The thing roars at them and Abel can’t help wondering a little hysterically if this is one of the fabled dungeon monsters, something so dangerous it’s been confined to this place for who knows how long.

Abel readies his sword, feeling like the steel in his hand is woefully inadequate for the task before him, but prepared to fight with all his might–

Then Fierce almost lazily unsheathes his giant sword, slices it across the air nowhere near the monster shifting towards them, and Abel watches with something like disbelief as a beam of light is emitted, moving unerringly towards the monster and burning the cranes it comes into contact with. They were packed so closely together to make the creature that they are all ashes in moments.

Wait, something is still moving! Abel turns and almost feels pity at the sight of a lone crane, charred on one wing, pathetically shuffling along the floor trying to get away from them, Fierce walks over and sets one large boot on the thing, slowly grinding it underfoot with an expression of boredom, like this was beneath him. Abel feels ice in his veins at the reminder of the terrible power the deity wields so casually.

The bars slide up from where they came and a loud Click is heard as the doors unlock. Rusl runs up to Fierce and claps him on the back, grinning at him and Fierce seems happy? Pleased? Less bored at least with Rusl asking about the sword beam and thanking Fierce for taking care of the thing.

Abel shakes his head to try and clear it of such gloomy thoughts, sheathing his sword for the moment and following the others out of the doorway. They came out on what appeared to be giant hands, where they stepped out on the cupped palms of the hands, with the fingers coming up to act as a guard from falling. On the wall opposite them were notes? And under each note was an illustration of the hands with a finger raised, to make a total of 8 different images. But why!

Fierce made a little noise, one that sounded almost delighted? And pulled out a lump, with holes. He blew into the spout? And a note came out, smooth and windy sounding, though the grind of stone behind him quickly distracted Abel. The index finger on the right hand had lowered with the note, but when Fierce went to play a different one the first snapped back into place with a loud crack that made both Abel and Rusl jump. Fierce hummed and and played some more notes in varying orders, managing to find 2 that when played sequentially, kept both fingers down.

“This method is inefficient, there must be a clue elsewhere in this room that we can access to get the correct order of notes.” 

 Abel and Rusl both did their best to see what else may be in the room. It was Rusl who leaned around the hands and noticed the nails were painted in different shades. This made the fact that the illustrations on the other wall were colored more significant, though it didn’t help them know what order to play in. Abel, tired of staring down a seemingly endless abyss turned back to maybe see if they had missed something previously and noticed the door they came through was outlined in a rainbow of color. The rainbow was off, because it wasn’t in the right order! 

“Fierce! The colors around the door must be what order to play in!”

Fierce nodded, and immediately began playing from the innermost to outermost color. When he did, an object appeared in the middle of the room, another chest, joy.

Fierce then played from outer colors in, and once the simple melody was finished the hands now flat underneath them jolted, and began moving towards the far side. They stopped at the platform (held by nothing as far as Abel could tell) opened the chest and pulled out a map and compass? Fierce gasped and seemed happy to hold onto the items, Abel didn’t understand why you would need to solve a puzzle in the middle of a dungeon to get the map.

@skyloftian-nutcase here's the first part as promised! now to continue onward! hopefully soon i'll have this up so that the parts of Dad squad written to be post-dungeon can start going up as well!

[rinthelonely]

Shade was driving on the quiet road, exhausted and frustrated. He had to overwork. Again. His work payed well but recently he has been thinking about finding a new job. No one seemed to do their share of the work so it all fell on Shade to do everything. He could only hope that Twilight is in bed and not waiting for him in the kitchen.

Shade finally parked his car in front of his house and noticed that there was one light on in the house. The kitchen light. 'Of course he's in the kitchen.' He has told Twilight that he doesn't need to wait for him on these days when he has extra work but, well, bad habits die hard.

Twilight was, in fact, in the kitchen sleeping on the table. Across from him was a plate with two appetising breads which were clearly for Shade. Shade couldn't help letting a fond smile creep up on his face. He always worried that Twilight would get tired of him working late almost everyday but every time when he came home Twilight always greeted him with a smile. He really needs to stop listening to what other people say. His coworkers always lamented how hard it is for a child to be alone for so long because his father doesn't have time for him. Even his younger brother, Time, often said that Shade is a terrible father to Twilight. Dark... well Shade doesn't know what Dark would say, he hasn't seen him in for years and would prefer to keep it that way.

After eating the breads, Shade picked Twilight up and carried him upstairs. They share the same bedroom which is very uncommon and unheard-of that a sixteen year old still sleeps in the same room as their parents. Well, parent. Shade had said that they can turn one of their rooms into Twilight's bedroom but he refused. Instead, they got another bed in their bedroom so that Twilight can have his own bed but still be with his father.

Just as Shade lowered Twilight on to his bed, the boy stirred a bit. "Mm... dad?" Shade hummed. "I'm here, little pup." Twilight rubbed his eyes a little before opening them. "How was work?" The father chuckled. "Same old, nothing interesting, only boring work." The son let out a tired laugh. "Have you considered getting a new job?" A playful scoff. "And have you considered fixing your sleep schedule before highschool?" A dramatic groan. "I don't wanna go to school." Shade shook his head fondly. "You don't have much of a choice, pup. Now, off to Dreamland with you." Just as he said those words, Twilight was out like a torch.

It was these tender moments that made Shade think that he is a lucky man to have a son like Twilight. He may not be a perfect father or a perfect role model, but he was good enough in Twilight's eyes. His job may be tiring and frustrating but coming home to see his son waiting for him always managed to make him feel warm inside. And with these warm thoughts, he got ready for bed.

----------------------------------------------

I tried my hand on a modern linked universe au. It's not good but it was pretty fun to write.

Little info on present and mentioned characters:

Shade: single father of Twilight, visits Rusl and Uli whenever possible, has a... complicated relationship with Time.

Twilight: only child of Shade, Time is his uncle and Wild is his biological cousin, honestly prefers to spend time with uncle Rusl than uncle Time.

Time: husband of Malon, biological father of Wild and has adopted other children (gee, I wonder who these other children are), the only reason why he contacted Shade again is because of Twilight.

Dark: Older twin brother of Time, could possibly be a wanted criminal, pretty much disappeared without a trace.

[artemistorm]

I just played more Twilight Princess last night and have some more thoughts:

I wonder if the monkeys in the Forest Temple are just the inhabitants or if they are actually the guardians of the Temple.

I went back to Ordon village after completing the temple and ohhh my heart! Everyone is so sad! And they're so excited to see Link!

Oh man, poor Rusl. That guy is suffering

I rewatched the cutscene where the kids are kidnapped and I think the monsters intended on kidnapping Twilight too, but they lost sight of him and accidentally left him behind. I think the spring healed him after getting clubbed in the head.

I actually just stumbled onto Hyrule field. I wasn't even trying to g there. The epic hero music that immediately started playing startled me and I thought I had stumbled into some sort of combat challenge.

Hyrule field is very cool and epic. I like how it turns to night the closer you get to the Twilight wall. The Twilight Wall looked SO COOL.

Being Dog Link has its perks, but I think I like being human Link more.

Whoah, I wasn't expecting there to be a fast travel portal system. Nice.

Twilight Kakariko looks like a junkyard. I accidentally blew up a building.

I FOUND THE KIDS! Except Ilya (of course)

I killed all the bugs got all of the spirit grapes but then died to one of those shadow aerocuda guys. I tried to hit "continue playing" but the wiimote was glitching out and I ended up hitting "quit game" and lost everything that I did in Kakariko >:(

I saw spirit Gorons! I love them.

[deadlygronkle]

Chapter 9 Ancestor's Legacy part 2

First half

archive

word count: 1148

Time was then left alone at the bar, carefully nursing his ale. He had a lot to ponder over with the information he got today and plan the next course of action. He obviously wasn’t going to let Twilight go alone, but how would he address this?

“So you're from the past?” Rusl asked, turning back to his own drink.

“From what we know, yes,” Time answered honestly.

Rusl took his drink and swirled it, “That means you are Link’s ancestor, not his father,”

Time looked over to the man startled, “How did you-”

“Your eyes. They are startlingly similar to Link’s,” Rusl interrupted, he then sighed and placed down his drink, “ I would like to apologize for the way I acted back in the room. I thought you were someone else,”

“You mentioned his father? Did you know him?” Time asked, setting down his own drink.

He had been wondering about his other descendants since Twilight snapped at him for bringing it up. Though if anyone would have any knowledge of them besides Twilight, it would have to be the people who raised him.

“No. I didn’t, but someone had to abandon him in the spring. He was lucky enough to be alive when I found ‘im,” Rusl replied, still looking down into his drink.

“What do you mean?” Time asked, looking over while tilting his head.

“Ordon Forest isn’t safe, especially at night. When I found him at the banks of the spring he was practically still a baby,” Rusl let out a fond laugh, “He had a way with animals even back then. There was a golden wolf with one eye protecting him. Left the moment I saw it,”

Time didn’t know how to respond to that. A wolf typically doesn’t care for people, especially young children. Maybe the crying reminded it of a young pup? Then again Twilight could turn into a wolf so maybe someone else could too?

“Why are you telling me all this?” Time finally asked.

“Someone needs to look over him in the desert. From what I’ve seen, you're the leader of that little group, correct?” Rusl answered finally look at Time.

Time sighed, took a drink, then said, “I’m afraid he wants to go by himself. How did you ever deal with him being that stubborn?”

Rusl chuckled, “Just have to out stubborn him. I doubt he would force ya to go back if you just left with him,”

Rusl looked back to where the Chain had been sitting before, “It was nice to see him getting to have fun with others around his age. Him and… Warriors, was it? They act more like brothers than just friends,”

Time smiled, “Yes they do, despite how much they mess with each other. I swear they are going to give me gray hair before this quest is done,”

Rusl barked out a laugh and slapped Time’s shoulder, “Welcome to being a Parent! Link and Colin have given me my fair share throughout them growing up. No doubt Hasa will as well,”

Time’s eye widened briefly. He wasn’t expecting Rusl to say that they were his kids! Granted he did scold them and kept them out of trouble. Oh, Goddesses, Time realized, he really was acting like a father to the Chain!

Rusl, seeing his expression snorted and said, “You just realized you're basically parenting those kids? Look on the bright side, you're getting practice for when you have children yourself!”

As Time was trying to come up with a response, Telma walked up behind the bar, “Rusl, I hate to do this, but have you looked at the time? You better back soon,”

Rusl glanced up and cursed, quickly draining the rest of his ale and placing his payment down, he said, “Yup, looks like I have to get going! Say Time, do ya mind doing me a favor?”

“Sure what is it?” Time asked, confused.

“There’s this big tree in the royal graveyard, you can’t miss it. Link tends to go there before missions. Can you make sure he hasn’t fallen asleep out there?” Rusl answered as he collected his things.

“I can do that,” Time promised, he was about ready to go back to the room anyway.

“Thanks, try to keep Link out of danger for me. Hylia knows he doesn’t have an ounce of self preservation,” Rusl jokes, walking out the door.

Time drained his drink a little after that. When he tried to pay for everyone's food Telma refused. She said that it was the least she could do for them making sure Twilight made it back safely. Time still couldn’t leave without remotely paying, so when Telma was turned around he dropped a red rupee on the table.

Leaving quickly after that Time headed back to the castle. Despite what the others joked about he remembered the way to the room. Going to the graveyard was a different story. After politely asking one of the soldiers for directions, Time went to the graveyard.

It was just a normal tree, big yes, but not the biggest Time had ever seen. Time found Twilight knelt in front of it, seemingly at peace. There were a couple of poppies laid out in front of Twilight, fresh enough to have picked that day.

“Pup,” Time watched as Twilight jumped and looked up in surprise, “You should be in bed. What are you doing out here?”

Twilight looked down and said, “Y’all were wondering who taught me the Mortal draw. Well this is his grave,”

Time glanced down around the tree base, “There’s no head stone,”

Twilight humorlessly laughed, “It's more to honor him than anything, there is no body buried here,”

Time was silent for a moment, “How do you know that this is his grave?”

Twilight glanced up at Time, he had been crying, “I don’t. There is a.. carving in the sewers. I’ve only been able to make out some of what it says, but it clearly says ‘The cursed Swordsman sleeps before the sacred tree’,”

Time, with a grunt, sat down next to Twilight, “Well, why don’t you tell me about him? Sharing memories is the best way to remember people,”

Twilight had a tear going down his face, “He was a stubborn man, when I first met him I couldn’t even land a hit on him. He told me that I disgraced the hero of legend whose tunic I wore. He taught me more than just ‘The mortal draw’, seven hidden skills which aided me on my journey,”

Time put one arm around Twilight trying to comfort his protege, “Why was he called ‘The Cursed Swordsman?’”

Time wondered if he was the one to teach the Hero’s Shade the skills he knew. After all, he created the move ‘Mortal Draw’ so it would have to come back to him. Those questions could wait though, right now he needed to provide comfort to Twilight.

“He… He died suddenly, wasn’t able to pass down his teaching to his descendants. He told me he regretted it so much he couldn’t pass on, until I came along,” Twilight said, with guilt written on his face.

“So you're related to him? What was his name?” Time asked gently.

“The Hero’s Shade. I thought I helped him find peace,” Twilight gave Time a watery smile, “Turns out I didn’t. That golden poe we saw was him, I failed to even make sure y-... he was properly put to rest,”

“Hey, no,” Time pulled Twilight closer to him, “I’m sure that’s not the case. You did your best, and I’m sure the Hero’s shade appreciated you learning and taking his lessons to heart. I’m sure whatever made him stay was not your fault,” Time said softly, giving Twilight a one armed hug.

Twilight gave a sad smile, “Yeah… Thanks for listening, Da– Time,”

Time got a warm feeling at the slip up, but pretended not to notice it, “No problem Pup. Say, is he going to join our group? I would like to meet my descendant who taught you those skills,”

Twilight laughed, “You already have. Now come on old man, I need to at least get some sleep tonight,”

Time wondered what Twilight meant by that. Though before he could ask Twilight had already started to walk away. Time looked back to the ancient tree, the Hero Shade had been dead a long time. He took one of the poppies that fell near his foot, and climbed the roots.

As he placed the poppy closer to the base of the tree, “I hope you’ll be able to rest peacefully soon,” Time whispered to the tree, before he followed Twilight to the room.

[majorproblems77]

RIGHT???????

SHE ALSO DID IT WITH A TEAR

A TEAR!

LIKE MY BESTIE WAS OUT HERE CRYING I THOUGHT LINK WAS GONNA CATCH IT FOR SOME SUPER CUTE MOMENTO TO REMEMBER HER BY THEN I SAW IT FLOAT INTO THE MIRROR AND IT START TO BREAK AND ZELDA BE LIKE THE FUCK AND I WAS JUST LIKE NO

NO BESTIE WHERE YOU GOING

Low key to go back to that Ganon fight for a moment i so enjoyed that final stage. Especially those quick time events they were awesome and really made me think and use all the skills that the heroes shade taught me. Like I was MASHING that button so hard whenever it came on

Oh man, I love the resistance so much I want to do more with them now. Like, I really had no idea that Rusl was in the resistance until he revealed himself later and I was shocked when I tell ya oh my god.

I really enjoyed the section with Shad as well, I love science guys in games and the whole investigation into the city in the sky was just so awesome i loved it so much. He is easily one of my favourite Zelda characters now

And when you say the whole world, I really mean the whole world, like i think the only thing I didn't finish was the dungeon in Gerudo desert, the cave of ordeals? I'm missing a poe soul and the snowboarding minigame too against yeta. (The yetis are beloveds ngl I love them they are wonderful)

I DID IT! :DDDDDDDDDDD TWILIGHT PRINCESS IS COMPLETED!

*spoilers to TP under the cut, for real like if youve not played it dont click this*

brb gotta write lu twilight related stuff now, he may not be a blorbo but now i have the power to write this man properly

MIDNA YOU CANT JUST SAY THAT AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT WHAT THE FUCK YOU BROKE LINKS HEART

MIDNA

MY FRIEND MY BESTIE ;-;

ALSO THAT FINAL FIGHT THO I LOVED IT

NKG;DJSHFKRLEAFRNJE;KABFRNJKE;ASBFREKJ;SBFRKJE;BGJKF;BGRJEJGKREBJGLREBJGKFBDUIGFNJKGBF

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

I WANNA YELL ABOOUT THIS IM ON A HIGH FOR FINALLY GETTING HIM DOWN SOMEONE YELL WITH ME PLEASE IM BEGGING YOU

Also i totally understand why its most peoples faves

[pocketramblr]

ok genuinely tho why does a human smith from a forest-isolated ranch outside of this kingdom have a “long connection” with a group of freak vigilantes inside of hyrule, including a former royal tutor and an absolute hero lore nerd. rusl what the hell is your backstory.

[smilesrobotlover]

Rusl was so injured he couldn't see from one eye and was limping badly. Rusl knew no-one on the village had the ability use the sword he had. Rusl was worried about the kids and the teens from the village missing. His son disappeared. All the kids were kidnapped by monsters. He probably fought with all he had but at the end failed to save the kids. He was bleeding, hurting, probably barely able to move, and still he went and grabbed the sword, and everything to protect the family he had not yet lost: Uli. And of course the baby she had.

He heard noise and went to check if it were the kids, or so he says on game. I guess he says that to not scare Uli or sth, because he goes to check with a sword if there were monsters on the area.

This is probably the WORST day of his fucking life and on top of it there's a monster on the village he can hear but not see. He patrols, limping, barely able to hold and swing the sword in a way that could damage a beast. He is exhausted, bloodloss and pain from every cell on his body making everything worse. He has to literally drag himself to patrol, if you see how he moves, and his face, you can see he's only doing this out of spite.

When he hits the wolf, if he does or if he sees him, he only takes half a heart with his blows, way too little damage for the best swordsman of the village. If Wolf Link gets too close to Uli, she screams, and Rusl is there to protect her 0,1 second later. He runs to protect her, we know Link won't do any harm, but they don't. Rusl gives his 100% and more to protect Uli here. He's severely injured. His wife tells him so. He still goes and pushes himself to the limit. He fights this monster if he has to. He's slow to hit the "beast", my theory is that he's either waiting for the wold to hit first or he's barely able to hold the sword, let alone give a damaging blow.

My boy Rusl is such a big hearted man that he literally would fight to death to protect his loved ones (I wonder where Link learned that).

I just wanted to show you canonnicaly injured Rusl and ended up rambling a bit, but he's such a lover, please, look at him.

I KNOOOOOOOOOOOW OH MY GOODNESS

if you go back after Faron temple, you’ll see him just lying on the couch clearly in pain and possibly delirious cuz of what he’s mumbling in his sleep. And he’s grunting in pain and overall looks absolutely exhausted over everything

Like this man was brutally injured and is finally getting the rest he’s supposed to be getting but just… his clothes is all bloody, I’m pretty sure that’s one of his pillows that’s possibly bloody cuz of him. Just, UGH. Nintendo really beat him up. But he did all of that to protect the children and to protect his wife despite barely being able to walk!! And he failed to save the children 😭😭😭 I can’t imagine how horrible he must feel for not being able to do it, but he nearly died trying to save them!

This makes me wonder if he was even ok enough to travel to castle town towards the end. That’s probably why he didn’t do much fighting in the game cuz he was still injured. But then again the resistance didn’t do as much as I’d like in tp so.

But Rusl is the best character ever I love that guy so much

[newartistgirl]

Lu little details (1)

  It’s the little details what make me hallucinate every single time there’s an update. Now, eventhough I may forget plenty of the ones I noticed while reading or thinking through (and some other I might have missed), I’m gonna try to list some of them.

  Im going to focus more on reference-to-games details not little details about the dynamics between the group.

  1. The first posts actually are full of references. Like really full. It would be endless to point out all of them. (Twilight and the soup, Legend and the seagulls, time being the one talking to the fairy, different views of the princess, Wind and the soup too, Twilight quoting Rusl (It’s not the only time), Legend thinking of “a separete world”) My favourite, probably, is Wind asking for Kaepora to repete what he had said. In this category I might add everything she took under consideration when decicing not just their personalities but also even their ages, and all the answers to some questions, being actually incredible the fact that Twi is ambidextrous (Tbh i don’t know what’s actually more impressive, the fact that jojo carefuly has in mind the dominant hand of each Link or the fact that someone, actually managed to notice Twilight would change hands) (Maybe I was not paying attention) (Now, I’m wondering if that drawing of Time shooting it was intentional. Because, if you look carefully, he is actually holding it like a right handed person would)

  2. Wild not knowing about wallmasters. This is the most obvious and straight to the point one of the boys having lived in different Hyrules and having had different adventures, however, in the comics that follow the stroryline you can also get from what they say several times hints of this exact same thing. Anyway, my favourite example of this is Sky asking who Ganon was.

  3. I would add here the different opinions of the Links on different matters (I’ve already mentioned the different views Hyrule and Wild have on the princess). Another example of this would be Wild and Wind “arguing” about Kings of Hyrule. It makes so much sense. (I’m not gonna go down that opinion/personlity lane, but it’s worth mentioning) And Twilight and Legend complaining about knights, all based on the game experiences.

  4. That image of Twilight holding a puppy and Wild, completely unbothered, next to him. I really like that kind of sense of humour, and it’s a funny tiny irrelevant detail that I very much appreciate.

  5. Warriors referencing his game. I think it’s happened three times. First, when they are talking and he hides himself from a lady and Hyrule laughs at him saying it’s the third time he’s done that, because being a lady’s man has already been proven as a danger .Second time, with the traitor little comic (I missed that one, ups). And third, while talking about the master sword and how “believing you are invencible” it’s a dangerous way of thinking. I know all Links actually make references to their respective games, but some other references feel more remarkable. 

  6. I almost forget about it. That conversation between Time and Wild about having entered Gerudo Town is another example of diference between the Links. It’s just that this one has a special place in my mind merely because I had never actually thought of that and it’s in fact wonderful how Wild reacts to hearing Time’s approach into granting himself respect and access to the town. Similar to this, due to the fact that it’s straight up linked to Wild, we have that scene where the gerudo outfit is descovered and he gets teased. (Fun fact; I had no actual clue that goron spice was actually a cooking item in botw until I red this. I had never shopped in the Goron City. And yeah, either I had already beaten Ganon or I was about to)

  7. In Lon Lon Ranch, as expected, we also have several references. Being the most noticeable; Malon explaining Hyrule wht they keep sugar water bowls around, the couple’s mask hanging on the wall, or how sky loves cuccos. (A little also “innocent” one may be that Malon straight up mocks her husband’s nose? Being this a reference to the design of the hero of Time)

  8. One that I also skipped (and very much love) is Twilight seeing some kind of resemblance between Time’s Captain’s hat and the Heroe’s Shade. We also see more Majora’s Mask references, being maybe the most obvious one Time saying: “Poor kid... He met a terrible fate”. Like, I can hear the Salesman’s laugh.

  I`m gonna leave it here for now evethough there are plenty more nice details that show the attention to detail of this comics. However, maybe it’s better to divide this into more defined categories, such as the different games or even characters. And maybe, that way, I can stress how much I appreciate some of those, because, let me tell you that I could rant on about every single one of this nonstop, specially if it’s related to who they are as characters. There’s in my opinion just too many good things to say about this guys and how the whole group works.

(please, correct any spelling mistake. I’m not a native speaker)

[skyloftian-nutcase]

The Pirate (Dad Squad)

EVERYBODY COME GET YOUR LINEBECK SOUP!!

Abel shook the strange feeling off of himself as they stepped through the gate created by the item. If it had led them here, that likely meant its twin had opened a portal to this land as well.

Blinking a few times to reorient after the brief kaleidoscope of light, Abel took in the sight of a bright sun, the smell of sea salt, and the sound of crashing waves. They were obviously by the ocean, though he had no idea where in particular, or what sea. He only knew of the Lanayru Sea, but tales spoke of other bodies of water that rivaled it.

Rusl walked ahead first, adapting quickly, eyes alert but face placid. Abel watched the Fierce Deity walk after him, unreadable as usual.

Something clearly caught their attention as they stood at the edge of the dock, staring. Abel peeked around them, wondering what it was, when he caught sight of the scene.

A ship was sinking. But it was moving towards them. Its deck had just been submerged, and its mast was all that was remaining. A man stood atop it, glaring ahead fiercely as if willing the boat to make it to the dock in time, but his posture was proud as if this had been planned all along.

What in the world...?

The mast managed to reach the dock in the nick of time, allowing the man to step off. He blew out a sigh, looking like his knees were about to buckle, when he caught sight of the group of men. He sized them up quickly, eyes widening a little at the sight of the deity, and then waved sharply. "How's it going? I'm just passing through. Gotta go now. Important things to do."

"Wait," Rusl interrupted, stepping into his way. "Can you tell us where we are?"

The man blinked, hackles less raised, confusion evident. "Where you--this is Mercay Island. How do you not know that? What, you get clocked by those red spandex wearing freakshows too?"

Abel immediately stiffened. "The Yiga were here?!"

"The who?" the man bounced back, looking even more confused as the wind whipped through his dark brown hair.

"It's a group of demon worshippers," Rusl explained. "They've taken our sons. We're tracking them. Where did you see them?"

The man's face flushed, eyebrows coming together in outrage. "They took someone of mine as well! And he's my best crewmate! Well, he's my only crewmate, but that isn't the point! I came here in search of a new ship to track them down since they--they sunk--"

Here the man sniffled, glancing away in seeming anguish at the lost of his boat.

"I'm sorry about your ship," Rusl said appeasingly. "But perhaps we can help each other."

The man hummed, crossing his arms and squinting at them as if he were debating the matter.

Abel started to grow impatient. "Do you want to find your crewmate or not?"

"Don't get short with me!" the man snapped. "I am Linebeck, captain of the seas, and I know this place better than anyone, especially you guys. I'm your only chance to find those freaks, so you're going to take orders from me now!"

The Fierce Deity picked the greasy looking man by the back of his coat, bringing him to eye level. The man, in turn, squealed, flailing his arms and legs in a desperate maneuver to get out of the hold, yelling, "LET ME GO, YOU BEACHED WHALE!"

Abel glanced at the deity, tempted to tell him to toss the man into the sea, but if he truly had seen the Yiga, then they unfortunately needed his help. Rusl just sighed, seeming to grow a little tired of being the sole negotiator of the group.

"How do you propose we find the Yiga if your ship has been damaged?" Fierce asked, silencing the man's squeals. "If I retrieve it, will you be able to repair it expediently?"

"Retrieve--it's sinking into the sea, you small brained land mass!"

Abel did have to almost laugh at that one. Rusl looked unimpressed by the man's impolite demeanor, but at least his insults were entertaining. Nevertheless, they needed to move.

Fierce seemed to sense Abel's impatience and Rusl's disapproval, casually tossing the sailor aside as he walked up to the mast. The man spluttered, shakily trying to get to his feet before promptly falling back on to his backside as he watched the deity singlehandedly start to pull the ship out of the water with a firm grasp at its mast. Abel heard the wood start to give, though, not tolerating the force it took to fight the water crushing the rest of the ship, and he put a hand on Fierce's shoulder. "Let it go. We'll have to find another way."

Rusl turned to Linebeck. "We'll work with you, friend, but not for you. Understood?"

Linebeck gulped, still trying to process what he just saw, and then he huffed, rising. "F-fine. Whatever. But I'm still in charge."

Abel felt his eyebrows pinch together. "That's not--"

"Let's go!" Linebeck announced, twirling around and marching towards the island. "I know just the ship we can acquire."

The three trudged behind him somewhat reluctantly. Abel bristled at being given orders from someone like this, but he kept his mouth shut for now. Instead, it was the sea captain who spoke first.

"So... what are all your names?" he asked as he continued to stride ahead.

The Ordonian answered first. "I'm Rusl. This is Abel, and Fierce."

"Fierce?" Linebeck repeated, glancing back at him. "Weird name."

"It is my title," Fierce clarified.

"Title? Who calls you Fierce? Fierce what, Fierce Breaker of Personal Boundaries?"

This man talked entirely too much.

"What's the plan?" Abel asked before the conversation could continue.

"That ship," Linebeck said, pointing towards a relatively large ship sitting in the harbor. "We can use that to track those scum."

"If you already had another ship, why were you perturbed at the loss of your other one?" Fierce questioned.

"It's not his," Abel surmised quickly.

Rusl smiled, rolling his shoulders. "All right, then. Who owns it?"

Abel glanced over at the Ordonian, a little baffled. He still hadn't entirely wrapped his head around what kind of work this man did - he was the most polite and kind of the group, easy with people, yet he condoned stealing in a heartbeat.

Not that Abel wouldn't steal if he had to, but... he had to. Rusl was... he didn't know. This just certainly was not the first time the man had done it, that was for sure.

And clearly, this sailor was more akin to a pirate.

Sighing heavily, Abel listened as Linebeck prattled on about some women "who won't be a problem," and the three men started moving steadily towards the boat.

Surprisingly, it only seemed to have two women aboard - Linebeck claimed that the rest of the crew was at the market. That at least made things simpler.

The four moved quickly. Rusl crouched low, leading the way and pulling out a dagger he hid in his belt. Despite being quite the swordsman, Abel had observed that Rusl often resorted to a dagger in close combat, and the more he saw it, the more he questioned the blacksmith's occupation. Fierce, on the other hand, left his hands open, likely not wanting to use his powerful blade on a couple women guarding a ship. Linebeck was also unarmed, curiously.

Sighing, Abel unsheathed his sword. He caught up to Rusl, and the two rushed up the gangway, picking a target and quickly overpowering them. Rusl never unsheathed his dagger, only using its small hilt to smack the woman across the temple, knocing her unconscious and covering her mouth as she fell. Her companion caught sight of him before Abel could get to her, yelling, but Abel easily tossed her overboard while Rusl pushed the other down the ramp.

Fierce walked aboard next, glancing around, while Linebeck sauntered aboard. The pirate's face was tight, as if he hadn't quite expected the ferocity the men had displayed, but he tried to cover it with a quick little, "Well done. Now we can depart."

"Not yet," Fierce said quietly, his voice in that low tone he used when stalking prey. Abel immediately went alert, whirling to find what he was looking at, when--

"Intruders!!"

Turning sharply, Abel saw a woman pointing from a door leading below deck. Within an instant, at least ten other women appeared, all armed and snarling.

"You said they were in the market!" Abel yelled as he readied for a fight.

Linebeck didn't reply, seemingly vanishing into thin air, and Abel only caught sight of his blue tailcoats slipping under a barrel.

"Did--did he just--"

"Not now!" Rusl snapped as their enemies charged on them.

Abel focused quickly, dodging a strike from a nearby fighter before parrying her blade and kicking her away to create some distance. Thankfully, he still had at least one functional shield left, and he quickly used it to block a jab from another enemy. Before he could retaliate, the two women were swept away by a... screaming woman?

Abel glanced to his right to see Fierce holding one of the fighters by her wrist and using her as a weapon to ram into the others. At his questioning glance, the deity explained, "The little hero usually does not approve of killing mortals. If these women prove problematic, I'll eliminate them, but for now--"

"Behind you!" Abel interrupted, pointing as another fighter tried to leap off the rail of the deck and stab Fierce in the head. The deity swatted her like a fly, and she rammed into the opposite end of the ship.

"Jolene!" some of the others shouted. Abel immediately perked up at the reaction - clearly this woman was important, maybe even the leader.

"Toss her off!" Abel ordered the deity, moving to intercept a few other enemies. He glanced to his left to check on Rusl and found the Ordonian starting to accumulate a pile of enemies who were on the ground writhing or motionless.

The former knight felt a swell of pride for his friend before looking back to see Fierce easily throwing the leader off the ship. As predicted, the others followed to check on her, leaving the men in peace temporarily. Abel put his sword and shield away to pull out his bow and arrows while Rusl pulled the gangway up to prevent them from returning. Moving to the edge of the ship, Abel nocked the arrow, aiming for a second before letting it fly. It sank into the woman's shoulder, making her scream in pain.

He nocked another arrow.

"Abel," Rusl interrupted, putting a hand on his shoulder. "The fight is over."

Abel continued to stare at his target. Killing her would put the rest of her crew into chaos. It would prevent them from following them.

Rusl's hand tightened a little, reassuring but firm. "Abel."

Sighing, Abel slowly lowered the bow and arrow. His focus was interrupted as he heard splashing, glancing over to see Fierce throwing the bodies overboard.

There was a scrape of wood on wood, catching the men's attention, and they all drew their weapons to see--

Linebeck, peeking out from under the barrel. "Oh, are they all gone?"

I'm going to kill him. Abel marched forward, eyes alight with rage, when he was held back by Fierce, who pinched the back of his tunic to prevent him from moving ahead. He turned to snap at the deity, but his words were quickly overrun by the pirate, who dusted himself off and continued, "Well done, then! We're ready to set sail! I'll man the helm."

As he moved forward on the deck, he scurried all of a sudden, filled with seemingly feral energy, and stood on his tiptoes at the railing, shouting, "THAT'S FOR ALMOST BLOWING UP MY SHIP TWO WEEKS AGO, JOLENE!"

Before anyone could comment, he rushed to set sail as if his life depended on it, guiding the ship out to sea.

Abel blew out a frustrated breath, and he felt Fierce release him. He kicked the barrel under which the pirate had been hiding, taking little satisfaction from it but having to get his anger out somehow.

Rusl took a moment to calm himself as well, though far less noticeably, before he walked over to the wheel. "So where are we going?"

"Bannan Island," Linebeck answered, eyes on the horizon. "That was the direction they went, towards the north sea. They also claimed to be going to a Banana Island, so I think they heard the place's name wrong."

Banana Island. Goddess. Sometimes Abel was almost embarrassed that these were his enemies. Though it simply proved that sheer numbers could cause enough of a threat, despite how idiotic they were.

There was silence for a while as Marcay Island grew steadily smaller. The adrenaline of the fight wore off, and Abel slowly slid to the ground, feeling his stomach grow steadily more upset at the tossing of the waves.

"Who are these people, anyway?" Linebeck eventually asked, glancing at Rusl. "What do they want?"

"They essentially want to see the world burn," Rusl answered, crossing his arms. "Somehow that involves taking our sons hostage."

Linebeck pursed his lips, debating some issue, and sighed. "Well, that's rotten luck. Good thing you have me."

"Oh yes," Abel huffed. "Where would we be without you?"

Linebeck didn't seem to catch his quip, or if he did, his rebuttal was interrupted by Fierce asking, "Why did they take your crewmate?"

Linebeck's face soured, and he glared ahead of him at nothing in particular. "Whatever the reason, Link can probably get himself of out of it. But... I need a crew. So I'm finding the kid."

Link?!

No. Surely not. There was no way this disgrace of a man had a Hero in his crew, and--

Oh goddess he did, didn't he? That would be why the Yiga targeted him.

"Our boys are named Link too," Rusl said, eyes widening a little as he came to the same conclusion. "Heroes of Hyrule, spread across time. I think they must be targeting them because they know they'd stop them otherwise."

"Heroes? Hyrule?" Linebeck repeated, staring at him. "My kid isn't a--I mean, he's--look, he's my crew, and... he's a good kid, but..."

The pirate bit his lip, staring at the wheel a moment, still and silent. Worry etched every feature before he shook his head.

"The Yiga will perish," Fierce assured him. "We'll find your child."

Linebeck flushed. "H-he's not my child!!"

"Right," Rusl chuckled, patting the man on the back.

Abel sighed, ignoring the pirate temporarily and looking at at sea. The horizon bounced up and down along with the ship, giving him a headache, and he closed his eyes. He wondered if they'd actually have any luck this time - all they'd found were scraps of information and cold leads. This attack seemed fairly fresh, so hopefully they could make it in time.

Ugh. Closing his eyes made the seasickness worse.

Thunder rumbled, catching Abel's attention, and he hastily opened his eyes to see dark clouds ahead. "Uh..."

"Are we going to sail through the storm?" Fierce questioned, staring at the abysmal weather.

"No sailor goes through a storm on purpose," Linebeck immediately said. "That's just suicide. Lucky for you, I'm an excellent sailor. We'll skirt around it - I don't want to lose too much time."

At least Abel could agree with the man on that. But still... even he, someone who did not navigate the ocean, knew not to get near a storm out in the open sea. "Are we sure about this? We should probably try to avoid it altogether."

"And give those sea vipers time to get away?" Linebeck growled, glaring at the clouds. "Ha! I, Linebeck, master of the seas, can handle this just fine! I'm getting my crew back, blast it!"

Well... he couldn't fault him for his determination, at least. But still... Abel sighed, hugging the wooden support rung under the railing, lightly bouncing his forehead against it. "We're going to die."

Abel's relatively mild quip felt more and more like a promise the closer they got. The winds picked up, the sea turning a sickly green, and Abel nearly threw up with how much they were being tossed around. Rusl nearly flew across the ship as one wave almost overturned them, and Fierce had to grab him by his shirt to save him. The three men clung to the rail desperately, occasionally getting beaten by walls of water spilling overtop them.

Abel looked to the helm worriedly, feeling completely out of control and petrified, only to see Linebeck standing firmly, holding the wheel with a steel grip. He glared defiantly at the sea, almost daring it to try its worst, confident and firm in his stance.

At the sight, the former knight had to admit he felt almost a little reassured.

Another wave crashed into them, and Abel watched Linebeck release the wheel a moment, letting it turn sharply, guiding the ship to ride with the wave. Then he grasped it, guiding the mast with gritted teeth as he fought against the whipping winds. Fierce pulled Abel close, shielding both him and Rusl with an iron grip to the railing so the waves wouldn't knock them off.

Honestly, with the way they were getting tossed, Abel would be surprised if they didn't capsize. He clung desperately to both the rail and the Fierce Deity, feeling the mythical being's strong arm pressing him and Rusl closer together. Rusl and Abel exchanged a look, some kind of finality or certainty in each other's eyes as they nearly flew over another wave, facing it head on.

They still had to find their boys. Abel had to get back to Tilieth. He'd survived a damn apocalypse, he wasn't letting this be what killed him.

Glancing up at the pirate again, Abel saw the same fierce determination on his face. It was a promise, and despite how Abel's entire world was trying to kill him, he took comfort in it.

Abel closed his eyes, his forehead touching Fierce's sleeve, his hand brushing against Rusl's as they both held on to the deity for dear life, shivering and trusting and letting go.

Hylia... I leave this up to you. Don't let me down.

He lost track of time. All he heard was the crashing of waves, like claps of thunder, roaring in his ears, making his heart pound. But slowly, surely, the boat jostled them less, the wind didn't howl as it had, and the ship rocked and bounced up and down like a hammock instead of feeling like an earthquake.

Abel opened his eyes, dripping wet, tasting salt and bile, and saw sunlight.

Linebeck smiled down at them, hands on his hips, looking triumphant. "Told you I was the best."

Rusl barked out a laugh, slowly rising while Abel continued to shiver in Fierce's hold. "Well, I'm certainly impressed."

"Are you alright?" Fierce whispered softly, his arm shifting to rest his hand on Abel's back.

Hesitantly, Abel rose, testing his legs, though his knees certainly felt like they could give out at any moment.

It was official. He despised sailing.

But he could recognize and admire skill when he saw it. "Well done, Linebeck."

The pirate beamed, postiively preening at the praise, and Abel found he couldn't hold himself together any longer, leaning over the rail and vomiting.

Linebeck cackled quietly, heading back to his original spot. "Well, it isn't for everyone, I guess. But I promise the rest of the way is less rough."

Rusl helped Abel sink back to the floor while Fierce grabbed some water at the Ordonian's request.

"You good?" Rusl asked. He was shivering too, just as soaked to the bone as Abel, but he seemed far better put together.

"Nothing fazes you, does it?" Abel asked hoarsely, somewhat annoyed and jealous.

Rusl smirked. "We all have our strengths. You're certainly a better fighter than me."

If you say so. Abel pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a little less nauseous, and accepted the water Fierce offered him.

The sun slowly dried everyone off as they continued to make their way to their destination. Eventually, Rusl, being the talkative man that he was, starting gently interrogating their captain while Abel leaned against Fierce with his eyes closed. The deity didn't mind, letting himself be a pillow, but Abel could hear fabric shift as he turned to listen in to the other two.

"How did Link become part of your crew?"

"Well, I was hunting treasure," Linebeck explained. "Link wanted to find the ship I was looking for. His friend, uh, needed some help. So we worked together. I figured the kid worked so well it only made sense that he stick around. He..."

Here the pirate paused, and Abel looked over at him. His eyes were cast downward, and though shadows pulled at the dark circles under his eyes, he had a gentle smile on his face.

"He's a good kid."

Fierce sighed quietly, barely audible over the breeze. "I must figure out why these Yiga are after our children."

Linebeck grew flustered. "I said he wasn't my kid!! Look, he's just a useful member of the crew, okay? Honestly, I'm not that soft!"

Fierce blinked, the slightest crinkle to his nose, a dead giveaway that he was bemused. "You speak of love and affection as if they are weaknesses."

"Wha--I--this is silly, I am a pirate, and--"

"And?" Rusl prompted, eyebrows raised, a mischievous, gentle smile pulling at one corner of his mouth. Fierce may not have understood the man's blustering, but Rusl clearly was just trying to mess with him now, seeing right through his bravado.

Personally, Abel was just a little exasperated by it. Men who pretended they were "tough" and nothing affected them all the time simply to show off annoyed him. He used to maintain a calm façade not because he was trying to prove a point, but because the last thing people needed was to see someone in charge panicking. This was different. This wasn't a way to keep others feeling safe and secure, this wasn't a means of protecting others, this was a pitiful attempt for Linebeck to protect himself.

Perhaps it wouldn't annoy him so much if he didn't suspect the man behaved this way in front of his kid too. He could act a fool to others, but if he denied his affection for his boy right in front of him, Abel did not approve of that.

But he didn't have to say anything. Fierce's innocent confusion would tear down his argument well enough.

Linebeck huffed, looking like he was scrambling for an argument, but Abel had to interrupt it when he caught sight of something. "Is that land?"

Everyone turned to look, seeing a small splotch of yellow and black andd green, and Linebeck laughed triumphantly. "There it is! Land ho! I told you I would get us there in record time! Now hold on, you sorry land slugs, we're coming in fast!"

He was true to his word as it seemed to take little time to reach their destination. For once, it was blessedly easy to find their target - a large ship with the Yiga symbol on its mast, painted sloppily as if it had just been done, was at the port. Linebeck worked to slow their approach, when Abel instead insisted, "Don't slow us down, just ram it - we'll take care of the rest!"

"There's a cannon on this ship," Rusl noted.

"We can't risk hurting the boys if they're aboard," Abel argued, shaking his head. "Just damage it enough to stop them from escaping, and we can board."

Linebeck nodded. "Just so you know... it's uh, all up to you once we get there. I'm a fantastic fighter, but I'm afraid my sword is on my own ship."

Rusl and Abel both stared at him dully. "Right."

The men prepared themselves, weapons at the ready. Fierce pulled out his double helix blade, making Linebeck's eyes double in size. "Geez, overkill much? Get ready, we'll hit them on the port side."

"The--the what side?"

"Port, on the port--ugh, on your left!!"

The three moved, and Linebeck snapped, "Your other left!! Left from facing the bow!"

Abel sighed heavily, positioning himself and bracing for impact alongside the other two. As the Yiga ship grew closer at an admittedly unnerving rate, he prepared to jump.

Their boat slammed the Yiga ship, impaling its hull slightly and causing it to rock so severely that they could hear some of the enemies screaming and falling into the sea.

Linebeck roared in satisfaction. "HAHA, TAKE THAT YOU BRAINLESS JELLYFISH!"

Abel let the momentum of the movement carry him, Rusl, and Fierce across as they leapt with the contact. The Yiga boat was still nearly on its side when they landed, causing them to slip a little, but Abel recovered quickly, decapitating the first Yiga in sight before moving on to the next. The team moved quickly, with Fierce taking out swathes of the enemy in one fell swoop while Rusl tore ahead. Abel scoured the area for signs of a leader, entering the underbelly of the ship as well.

When he reached the brig, he froze, breath stolen from his lungs. There was another gate there, its bright kaleidoscope dizzyingly swirling, and two Yiga stood before it, holding an unconscious boy.

Oh hell no! Charging ahead, Abel stabbed one Yiga quickly, kicking the other off the child before finishing him off. Rusl hastened in shortly thereafter, wiping blood of his sword.

"Anyone else?" Abel asked as he knelt down to check on the child.

Rusl shook his head, cheeks flushed, eyes aflame. He held up a booklet. "Found a journal log, though. Might be able to help us."

At this point, Abel honestly wasn't surprised, just exasperated. He supposed the Yiga's main purpose in being here was to take this boy. Theirs were still at large.

At least they'd spared this boy the same fate.

Fierce entered last. "The enemy has been eliminated."

Abel sighed, looking down. The boy in front of him was young, not even a teenager from the looks of it, though he was likely close. His hair was thick and wispy, golden as the sands and thick with mositure and sea salt. He wore a green tunic and undershirt, paired with white trousers.

"Link!"

Catching the men's attention, Linebeck rushed into the room, kneeling down beside the boy. His hands hovered over him hesitantly, face paling at the abrasions on the boy's face. At first his concern was genuine, but his eyes shifted to the dead Yiga around him and suddenly he looked woozy.

Abel fought the urge to roll his eyes. He motioned with his head to Fierce, who quietly removed the bodies. With the distraction gone, the pirate returned his attention to the child, considerably less pale but still oh so hesitant and gentle with Link.

The boy stirred, squeezing his eyes before slowly blinking them open. Abel could see the immediate sparkle of relief as the boy registered seeing Linebeck, and the former knight smiled a little.

Linebeck smiled in return, hands finally settling on the child, patting hsi cheek and helping him sit up. His grip settled on the boy's shoulders, and he took a steadying breath.

And then he started shaking him like a rag doll.

"You stupid sea monkey, what were you thinking do you have any idea how much trouble I had to go through just to get to you, they sank my ship, now we have to get a new one--!"

The other men stared, a little caught off guard, and then Rusl gently pointed out, "Easy, you're going to give the kid whiplash."

Linebeck paused, glancing at them, leaving Link nearly limp in his grip, eyes dazed and clearly dizzy. The pirate huffed, pulling the boy to his feet, and Link stumbled around a few paces before nearly collapsing against him.

Sighing, Linebeck settled an arm around the child to keep him from falling over, letting him lean against him. "Well. The job's done, at least. But... didn't you say your boys were missing too?"

Rusl smirked. "Ah, so he is your boy?"

Linebeck jumped, eyes widening. "W-wha--no, I--you're dodging the question!"

Rusl waved the booklet in response. "I'm sure this log will have valuable information for us. But you and your son should get out of here. We'll make sure the Yiga can't come back."

Linebeck was practically inflating with hot air to rebuke Rusl's claims about him and Link, but he instead stormed out. "Honestly, I rescue you ungrateful sea barnacles and you mock me. I'm leaving."

"You forgot your kid," Abel noted dully as the boy shook his head and steadied himself.

"Link, let's go, what are you waiting for!" Linebeck called from above deck.

Abel put a steadying hand on the boy's shoulder while Rusl smiled warmly at him. "Better get going, son."

The boy looked between them, adn then the Fierce Deity, and then he nodded, saying softly, "Thank you. Thank you for taking care Linebeck."

With that, the kid ran outside, and Rusl laughed. Abel had to chuckle at the ridiculousness of it all.

"Let's get through this gate and seal it," Abel suggested. "We can read the journal after we get out of here. The less likely they can come back, the better."

Fierce's reply was cut off by voices from above.

"Linebeck, look! It's Jolene's ship!"

"Of course it is, I stole it!"

"But then why is your ship over there?"

"What?! My ship was--that's my ship!"

"Oh! I think I see Jolene on it!"

"She fixed my ship? SHE STOLE MY SHIP??"

Rusl and Abel exchanged a look, and then they both snickered.

Fierce glanced hesitantly above deck, but Abel shook his head. "Leave him to his fate. Clearly this is not their first encounter, and they've managed without us. We should go."

With that, the three men strode forward, preparing for another adventure.

[rose-9906]

hello! i hope you are having a wonderful day/night. could i please have prompt 8 for Jack Sparrow x Reader? <3

Prompt 8 - Open this door right now or I swear I'll break it down

Captain Jack Sparrow x Reader

Words - 695

Notes - I hope this is somewhat what you had in mind, if not I will happily re-do it. Hope you enjoy :)

Photo Credit - https://www.pinterest.com/pin/756745543651606841/

What was he thinking? He could have avoided the whole situation! I swear I’m gonna kill that man someday, if he doesn’t get himself killed first. Jack had steered the ship straight at the navy. He was on a confidence boost, thinking he would win a battle real quick then move on to follow the heading. It resulted in a couple men killers, and most injured. You were pissed, still are. You're on your way to find him when Gibbs caught your attention. “Sir, the men are wondering when Captain Jack be back. He be gone a while now.” Gibbs was right, Jack had been hidden away since this morning, after the battle. “I was just on my way to check, anything you'd like me to ask?” “No sir, I’ll get back to work.” He gives you a tilt of his head, you return the favor, and he is off. You continue through the ship to Jack’s cabin. As you walk around you will occasionally see someone leaning against a wall or post, tending to their wound. They shouldn't have those wounds, they should be up helping sail the ship. You reach Jack’s cabin and open the door, except it doesn't open. “Jack? Are you in there?” You hear a slight rustling but no answer. “JACK, I know you're in there!” “Jack’s not in here sorry.” You hear him say, his words are slurred and he sounds like he tried to lower his voice. “Jack, open the door!” You wait for his response. There's no response. “Jack, open this door right now or I swear I’ll break it down!” You hear a faint rustling then the loud rusling of boots on the wood floor. They sound uneven, he's been drinking hasn't he. The doorknob unlocks and Jack opens it only wide enough for you to see his body. “Can I help ya luv.” His words slur to one long word. “Are you drunk!?” At this point you were pissed. “I’ve only had a bottle.” He tilts his head and gives you a grin. “Your men are out there half bleeding to death and you're sitting in your cabin drinking like you don’t care if your ship sinks!” You have a stern look on your face, almost like a mother scolding her child. “They're all fine.” He takes another swig from the bottle in his hand. You grab the bottle from his hand, taking a swig for yourself. “How would you know, you've been in your cabin all day, I’ve been captaining your ship for you!” Jack tries to reach for the bottle of rum, but you move your hand out of the way. “No more rum!” “Ay, that's not fair!” He puts a pouting look onto his face. “And nothing will be till you apologize to yer men.” You cross your arms across your chest. He won't last 5 minutes without his rum. “I hate how much power you have over me.” He glares at you before stepping out of his room to apologize. As soon as you've seen him leave you walk into the room. There are two empty rum bottles laying on the table, along with his compass and a map. You pick up the bottles and set them in the cabinet with all the others. You don’t dare touch the compass, never have, never will. You know where it will point. You're sitting on the bed taking a sip of rum when Jack walks back in. “I’m gonna be teased about that forever.” He stands in front of you, waiting for your next move. “You deserve it, and as much as I would like to continue being unfair, I want my man.” You let a smirk creep onto your face. He smiles back at you before removing his boots, belt, and weapons. You do the same and put everything at the end of your bed. You both slide under the covers, cuddling close together. You give him a loving kiss on the lips, he returns the favor. You let him hold you, even when you're mad at him, he's the one who can make it better. He will always be your compass.

By: madforteatime

[nancyheart11]

The atmosphere is gentle and calm, with soft walls of cotton and fluff all around, colored darkly but glowing in the candlelight. Shadow’s fallen asleep, leaning against Wild, who in turn is using Wolfie as a backrest. Power’s stirring his hot chocolate quietly, glancing over at Rusl, who smiles reassuringly - the young man keeps looking around waiting for something bad to happen, after all.

But then he glances over at you, who are sitting in the corner with hot chocolate in hand and a million resources strewn about you. Rusl asks you if you need a refill, while Power simply observes and wonders how in the world you could possibly study all that.

But either way, it’s at least a chill moment.

(Hope studying’s going well! <3)

I finished all my finals for the semester!!

Lofty this ask had me going 🥺🥺🥺 and every time I wanted to quit I brought this up and it helped!

(the amount of textbooks I'm sleeping on is less than I used to study somehow XD)

[alasse-earfalas]

day 2 | fluff-whump-tober

“You told him‽”

“Of course I did! I don’t want my father to think the village is in danger every time you decide to turn into a wolf!”

Link couldn’t believe this. He’d trusted Ilia with this secret, and here she went and told Mayor Bo‽ He was going to tell everyone!

“Why are you so determined to keep this a secret, anyway?” she asked, hands on her hips.

“Because it makes me look like a monster!” he spat. It was rare for him to express anger or fear, but this was a massive breach of trust. “I can’t believe you. I trusted you!” He marched out the door.

“Link wai—”

Click.

Two steps out his front door and he was met with the subject of their conversation. Mayor Bo was a big man, and though that usually lent itself to his friendly demeanor, it could also be incredibly imposing.

Like right now.

“I always wondered about that strange wolf that got into our village,” said Bo. To Link’s horror, the mayor wasn’t alone. It seemed he had, in fact, told everyone.

“So it was you,” said Rusl, and Link couldn’t read his flat tone or blank expression. “You’re the one who’s been terrorizing the children.”

“I—! Please, let me explain!” Link stepped back into the tree he called home. The villagers surrounded him, and Ilia blocked the front door. 

“Oh my daughter explained plenty,” said Bo. “So why don’t you show us this wolf form of yours?” 

Link tried to remember his courage. He was hedged in on every side. Defeated, he muttered, “Fine,” and reached into his pouch. The cursed crystal was wrapped in Twili fabric, imbued with magic by Midna so he could carry it without transforming. And next to it was a Moon Pearl, gifted to him by Princess Zelda, so he wouldn’t have to rely on the Master Sword to purge the curse and change back. 

He’d done it so many times by now that the change happened quickly, and he could numb himself to its bone-shaping pain. He stood still in front of his friends, his mentor, the children. 

Link heard Colin gasp. His gaze flicked to his little friend, and against his will, he whined. 

“Hoo!” Fado was the first to break the stunned silence. “No wonder them goats didn’t run ya into the ground. They must’a known it was you! I was mighty confused about that; I know they more ‘n capable.” 

Rusl kneeled, trying to catch Link’s gaze. Once caught, he held it in stoic silence. Link still couldn’t read him. He whined again. 

Suddenly Colin rushed forward, hesitated, then threw his arm around the plush neck of the wolf. Link put his head down, wrapping it over Colin’s shoulder. 

Rusl smiled. “So it is you,” he whispered. “Link, I’m sorry I turned my blade on you. I didn’t know.” 

Colin stepped back. “It is you, isn’t it?” 

Using the Moon Pearl, Link changed back, carefully wrapping the dark crystal back in its cloth. “It’s me,” he said. 

@flufftober prompt: “You’ve told your parents?” 

@whumptober prompt: Nowhere to Run | Cornered | Confrontation

Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/42067278/chapters/105706857